MACON, Ga. – After jumping out to a 9-3 lead the Lipscomb men’s basketball went ice cold scoring only eight points the rest of the first half en route to an 83-58 loss to Atlantic Sun Conference leader Mercer on Thursday night at Hawkins Arena in Macon.

“We were not very good on either end of the floor and when that happens you get beat the way we did tonight,” said Lipscomb head coach Scott Sanderson. “The middle part of the first half and the first part of the second half, we just did not sustain. Against a very good team like Mercer, who is so efficient, it is very difficult to come back when they have a lead like they had.”

The Bears (19-9, 12-3 A-Sun) showed why they sit atop the league standings forcing the Bisons (10-16, 5-10 A-Sun) into 22 turnovers that led to 32 points for Mercer.

Mercer was led by Anthony White, Jr. who tallied a career-high 15 points behind three treys as part of 39 points off the bench for the Bears.

Senior guard Deonte Alexander led the Bisons with a 15-point night on 6-of-13 shooting from the floor. The rest of the team struggled from the field hitting only 14-of-34 attempts.

“Deonte has been pretty consistent for us for the most part on both ends of the floor but you’ve got to have more than one guy,” said Sanderson. “We had a lot of guys, for whatever reason didn’t show up on either end of the floor and that will hurt you.”

The Bisons won the battle of the boards 30-28 and went 17-for-26 from the charity stripe, while the usual sharp shooting Bears hit only 16-of-27 from the line.

Lipscomb takes on Kennesaw State on Saturday afternoon at 1:30 p.m. in Kennesaw, Ga. in a game that has large postseason implications as the Bisons and Owls battle for the final berth into the Atlantic Sun Conference tournament hosted Mar. 6-9 in Macon.